12/30/2015  It’s over. The holiday parties for the kids are completed. There were 3 and they grew in intensity and insanity as they progressed. I am blessed that 3 was the limit. I don’t know how Nidia does it. Yes, she is younger than I am, but holy crap, this girl gets shit done. She is well enough known on the island that her name is recognized almost everywhere you go. EVERYBODY KNOWS AND LOVES NIDIA. It’s very chaotic but she really has things totally under control. It just doesn’t seem that way to me and I think intense organization is needed in this type of situation. I chilled.

The one and only Nidia Webster. Photo by Ana Svoboda

The final party we did was a big one with about 500 kids. There were lots of toys donated by so many people, it’s really cool when people who don’t even know these kids or their situations, donate money so we can buy things to help them. It’s humbling. Thanks again to Walt and Judy, Beth and Aaron, Trish and Dave, Cathilee, Ginny, Ralph and Rick.

I got there around 11 Wed. to help set up. A few representatives came from Carnival Cruise Lines with lots of toys and stuffed animals. There were some really really nice things there. My friends from Alabama brought 4 backpacks and a suitcase full of toys and sandals. A lot of the sandals they brought were brand new Reef sandals and were totally fabulous. Thanks Robby, Julie, Cortnee, Jessie and Molly!! Miss Peggy (Clinic Esperanza) brought some people to see the children and to help us out for a few hours. Peggy helped cut the hundreds of hot dog rolls for lunch.

This will be an un-wordy post because I have so many pictures I want to share, so bear with me, I’ll be back in a few days with the stories about island life.

This was the best, a donation from my cop buddy, Eduardo. This is the first time Nidia has ever gotten a donation from the Police department. Thank you Eduardo Fuentes Torres!!

The party was held in an open walled bar across the street from the water. Right down the street was the Cruise Dock terminal. The tables wrapped around 2 sides of the building and were full of toys.

The photos are terrible because the lighting was weird. The room was round with open walls but a roof overhang, difficult to get decent lighting. More toys

Minnie Mouse and Barbie bags, jump ropes, crayons, rings

Stuffed toys everywhere. Some were brand new Beanie Babies..

4 tables of stuffed toys

Miss Peggy (Santa hat) cutting rolls

Toys from Carnival Cruise Lines

More Carnival stuff

The little girls will love these shoes

1 huge table of sandals

Bags of candy and small toys, gold for babies, red for girls, blue for the boys

Carnival Cruise’s stuffed animals

And then there are the faces…and the big dark eyes with the insanely long eyelashes!

beauties

Please take our picture..

Too cute!!

With his older brother

Pretty girl

A new friend named Greg snapped this w/ my camera..

Showing me their toys

Waiting for Santa

Lousy shot, gorgeous girls

Love the shirt

Look at her shirt, it has a candy cane tucked in the belt

They love to have their photo taken, such a novelty. So different from the kids in the states who take selfies all day every day and post them for all the world to see.

My friend Jeanette and I. I met her and her husband Don last year doing the food drive.

Another brutal game of musical chairs. We ended up with a broken chair and a crying little boy. He was OK..

It was like the Fight Club of musical chairs

The clowns were all dressed up. One did face painting and the other balloons.

Cool clown shoes

Forming a circle to play another game.

These kids..

The balloon was bigger than him

This little cutie pie is 4. She was in my pics from Helene, her Mom is my friend Darla. When she saw me today she gave me a big kiss..

Dimples much??

They did lots of waiting

Another pretty girl

beautiful young girls

He’s here!!

a cutie with some ears..

Nidia’s fabulous hat from Jeanette’s daughter. The girl to Nidia’s left with the baby (her niece) is my friend Darla, she teaches school on Helene.

Santa is looking serious..

love Santa’s flip-flops

waiting for Santa

Just like in Punta Gorda, everyone got a Santa hat or Minnie/Mickey ears..

Santa’s everywhere

Beautiful smile and teeth

second pic of this girl

Santa hugged all of the kids.

No matter how big they were.

Santa played a sleight of hand kind of game with the kids bags of candy. The boys were all giggling.

Hugs

My friend Darla’s niece

She is so pretty

Franklin, Nidia’s oldest son took a pic of us w/ my camera..

Adorable

her sister

caught her mid bite with ice cream

Nidia surveying the situation

After Santa passed out the candy to the kids then we passed out the gifts.

Cruise ship anchored out at sea, 3 ships in port, can’t all be at the dock.

And, to end the day, my friend Ana came by with her sick German Shepherd dog Coco. I was a part of Coco’s Bucket List, places for Coco to visit. I can’t think of a better way to end my day than hugging Coco.

This photo was taken by Captain Carlos Aguirre Lopez of Taca airlines. You can see the 3 cruise ships in Coxen Hole dock, then the airport runway, then the white area to the upper right of the runway is the 4th cruise ship at Mahogany Bay. It was a busy day on Roatan!!

So there you have it, the end of the holiday season on Roatan. This was the first time in a few years that Nidia didn’t do a food drive. It’s always nice to feed the needy but when it comes to the holidays there is nothing that kids look forward to like Santa and the whole legend surrounding him. Santa is not a big part of their Christmas because their families don’t have the money to buy them things. If it weren’t for the Christmas parties sponsored by various groups on the island, many children wouldn’t really have a Christmas.

Thank you so much to all of my friends who have so generously donated. You DO make a difference.

** All of the leftover things from the party were shipped to Helene, the small island that is separated by a mangrove channel but is still part of Roatan. The people there were asking for help with Christmas. Many of them have next to nothing so anything to give their children would be a blessing. They received toys, sandals, stuffed animals, bags of candy and other toys.

Happy New Year everyone!!